Employees drive stock Rivian R1T to first EV victory in 1,600-mile Rebelle Rally

A pair of Rivian employees driving a stock R1T won this year’s Rebelle Rally, the women-only 1,600-mile off-road course where GPS navigation is forbidden.

This is the first time in the history of the event that an all-electric vehicle won in the 4x4 class, which is the main category of the competition, followed by the X-Cross where crossovers like the Ford Bronco Sport and Ford Mustang Mach-E also entered.

Lillian Macaruso piloted the victorious Rivian, with Alexandra Anderson acting as co-driver. Their team, known as the "Limestone Legends" due to their Limestone-colored truck, amassed 1,395 points—88 percent of the possible points.

The runner-up, a 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4xe, scored 1,359 points. Taking third place was a 2022 Ford Bronco Raptor with 1,301 points, indicating the electric-powered team was in esteemed company throughout the weeklong off-road event.

The Rebelle Rally holds the distinction of being the longest off-road race in the U.S., spanning over 1,500 miles of Nevada and California desert terrain.

The same duo finished in fourth place among 45 teams last year and secured the "Rookie of the Year Award," showing they had aimed for the top prize on their second outing.

Macaruso works as a Special Projects Engineer at Rivian and managed to swap a tire in just four minutes alongside her teammate last year. Anderson serves as a Senior Mechanical Engineer at the California-based electric vehicle company.

Interestingly, Rivian's involvement with the Rebelle Rally is not recent. The company first participated in 2020, when journalist Emme Hall drove a pre-production R1T.

This year, four Rivian R1Ts competed, three sponsored by the Irvine-based electric vehicle firm and a fourth entered by private owners—the competition's first privately-owned EV entry.

The customer-driven team, consisting of Mandy Brezina and Alex Gilman, ended in 11th place, whereas the other Rivian-supported teams finished in 20th and 30th places out of 55 total 4x4 class entries.

Launched in 2015, the Rebelle Rally is a women-only event where the use of digital navigation tools like GPS is prohibited. Competitors must navigate using traditional methods like compasses, paper maps, and plotters. The challenge is notably greater for electric vehicles, considering the scarcity of charging facilities in the desert.

Source: InsideEVs